Reflexively hating public employees is a stock RW position. Public employees are Mom, and everybody hates Mom.

If people lose their ACA subsidies because republicans slashed them and refused over and over again to even try to restore them, which of those people is going to look at those increased price tags and say “goddamn I blame democrats for not using their leverage”? Listen to yourselves.

if AIPAC controls both parties why doesn’t big pharma control either party

The reason Democrats can't do anything more than sometimes stall the Republicans before they destroy something is because not enough Democrats were elected to stop them, so embracing a "primary and replace every Dem" strategy which will prob lead to even fewer Dems in Congress seems less than ideal

I don't agree with the decision to vote by the Dems, but I do think a lot of folks really don't grasp how much suffering is on the table if this shutdown continues.

Between federal workers, SNAP beneficiaries, and others, that's a lot of pain to swallow for not a lot of gain.

I have always been a Democrat and I always will be. To walk away from them now is exactly what Republicans want. After last week's election they are worried. Trump is terrified. Show them we are disappointed but united, and that they have a reason to be worried. It will make them very nervous.

"We thought this was the absolute best we could get out of Republicans, we never even had hope for the ACA subsidies" fucks the rest of the caucus. "We tried and it wasn't working" does not.

I mean, at the very least use it as an opportunity to attack Republicans. "It turns out Republicans are willing to burn down the whole government rather than agree to lowering health care costs for working families. So be it. If you don't like that, vote for Democrats next year."

As one of the "base": They were never going to win with a shutdown. Too much of the GOP caucus actually likes a shutdown. The Dems were aiming a gun at their own head threatening to shoot if ACA subsidies weren't extended. It was never going to work.